Wrongfully convicted ‘doppelganger’ awarded $1.1 million
Richard Jones was released from prison in 2017 after spending 17 years behind bars
A wrongly convicted man who spent 17 years in prison until lawyers discovered his lookalike has received more than a million dollars in compensation.
Richard Jones was imprisoned in 2000 for an aggravated robbery the previous year, in which he was alleged to have attempted to steal a female shopper’s handbag in a supermarket car park. He denied the charges, testifying on the stand that he was with his girlfriend at her home at the time of the robbery.
Despite his denial and the lack of physical or DNA evidence linking him to the crime, he was found guilty on the accounts of two eyewitnesses who separately identified him as the would-be robber in a photo line-up and sentenced to 19 years.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
“After he had been in prison for many years, other inmates pointed out to him that he bore a strong resemblance to another man,” the Kansas City Star reports, leading Jones to suspect that he had been convicted due to mistaken identity.
His case was taken up by lawyers working for the Paul E. Wilson Defender Project at the University of Kansas School of Law and the Midwest Innocence Project, nonprofits which seek justice for the wrongly-convicted. The lawyers were able to track down Jones’ doppelganger, Ricky Amos, a Kansas City man who indeed bore a striking visible resemblance to the man serving a lengthy jail term for a robbery he did not commit.
Last year, Jones’ legal team secured a court hearing at which they demonstrated that “witnesses, including the robbery victim, who looked at the pictures of the two men together could no longer say if Jones was the robber”, the Kansas City Star reports.
Johnson County District Judge Kevin Moriarty nonetheless ordered Jones' release on the grounds that “no reasonable juror would have convicted Jones” on eyewitness testimony alone knowing about his lookalike. Amos denies committing the crime, on which the statute of limitations has now expired.
This week, Jones, now 42, has been awarded a payout of $1,103,945 (£1,873,927) under a new statute in Kansas state law which allows prisoners to seek compensation for wrongful imprisonment. In addition, “he was granted a certificate of innocence and will receive counseling and health care through the state for two years”, NBC News reports.
Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe called the case “one of the most bizarre scenarios that I’ve seen in my 27 years of prosecuting cases”.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Movies to watch in November, from 'Wicked' to 'Gladiator II'
The Week Recommends A major musical adaptation, a Roman Empire sequel and a movie where Santa gets kidnapped
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published
-
Where does Elon Musk go from here?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION After gambling big on Donald Trump's reelection bid, the world's wealthiest man is poised to become even more powerful — and controversial — than ever
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Usha Vance: a political spouse with a 'conspicuous resume'
In the Spotlight The new second lady plays a behind-the-scenes role
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
What we know about the Copenhagen mall shooting
Speed Read Lone gunman had mental health issues and not thought to have terror motive, police say
By The Week Staff Published
-
Texas school shooting: parents turn anger on police
Speed Read Officers had to be urged to enter building where gunman killed 21 people
By The Week Staff Published
-
DJ Tim Westwood denies multiple sexual misconduct allegations
Speed Read At least seven women accuse the radio and TV presenter of predatory behaviour dating back three decades
By The Week Staff Published
-
What happened to Katie Kenyon?
Speed Read Man charged as police search for missing 33-year-old last seen getting into van
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
Brooklyn subway shooting: exploring New York’s ‘steep decline in law and order’
Speed Read Last week, a gunman set off smoke bombs and opened fire on a rush-hour train in the city
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
How the Capitol attack investigation is splitting the Republicans
Speed Read Vote to censure two Republican representatives has revealed deep divisions within party
By The Week Staff Published
-
Is sentencing a Nazi sympathiser to read Shakespeare an appropriate punishment?
Speed Read Judge seemed to think introducing student ‘to high culture’ would ‘magically make him a better person’ said The Daily Telegraph
By The Week Staff Published
-
Sarah Everard’s murder: a national reckoning?
Speed Read Wayne Couzen’s guilty plea doesn’t ‘tidy away the reality of sexual violence’
By The Week Staff Last updated